A 49-year-old Carson City woman was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of child neglect after leaving two children inside a parked vehicle while she shopped inside a store, a Carson City sheriff’s deputy said.
Arrested was Lilia Gutierrez. She faces two felony charges of child neglect and endangerment with a bail of $5,000.
According to the arrest report, officers were dispatched to the Dollar General at 3059 Highway 50 East at 3:51 p.m. in reference to two small children in a red Ford minivan who were unsupervised.
On scene, the officer located the minivan. The front driver and passenger windows were found to be rolled down approximately half way. All other windows and doors were closed. The minivan was not running. A deputy found the unsupervised children inside, sisters who ages are 7 and 2. The van was unlocked and was found to be very warm in the interior area, according to the arrest report.
During the officer’s investigation, one child was crying and said her grandmother was inside the store shopping. She said she became scared when strangers approached the van. She said she and her sister hid so as not to be seen, the arrest report states.
The officer then made contact with Gutierrez who said she only stopped at the store to pick up some milk and items for the children. She was found to be in the company of a five year old, the brother of both of the girls, the arrest report states.
The officer asked why she took only the one child into the store and not the two girls. Gutierrez told the officer she was only in the store for a few minutes, picking up items for the children. She said her shopping cart was still in the store and that officers could look at it if they wanted to.
A deputy entered the store and made contact with witnesses and reporting witnesses. A woman said she called the sheriff’s office when she had discovered the two little girls alone in the minivan and then drew the officer’s attention to a shopping cart that had multiple items in it.
She said the shopping cart belonged to the woman who was using it to conduct her shopping. She said she believed the woman was in the store with the little girls inside the vehicle for approximately 30 minutes. The witness later advised that she reviewed the store video system and found that the minivan had entered the parking lot at 3:40 p.m. The witness said she was upset that a person would leave their young children alone in a vehicle.
Gutierrez was arrested at 4:06 p.m. and taken to jail. The minivan was released to their children’s grandfather. Officers are attempting to obtain a copy of the video from the store.
In other arrests: A 48-year-old Mound House woman, Tanya Maria Shoemaker, was arrested Thursday, 2:42 a.m. in the area of Highway 50 East and Flint Road on a felony probation charge. The woman had been in a casino and was on probation with a condition not to be in a casino. She also faces a misdemeanor charge of not having proof of insurance.
— A 57-year-old Carson City man was arrested Thursday, 12:39 a.m. in the area of Long and Marian streets on a misdemeanor charge of domestic battery and violation of probation conditions.
According to the arrest report, the man and his brother were drinking whiskey and got into a fight Wednesday night. The suspect was located walking westbound on Long Street. Inside his jacket pocket was a bottle of whiskey. Dispatch advised the man was on Alternative Sentencing with a condition not to drink and to obey all laws. He blew at BAC of .103. and was taken to jail. Bail: $6,137.
— A 31-year-old South Lake Tahoe man was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant for petit larceny issued May 8, 2015 out of Carson City Justice Court. Bail: $1,000.
All information for the crime log (unless otherwise noted) comes from the arrest reports supplied by the Carson City Sheriff’s Office, and is considered by law to be public information. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The policy of Carson Now is to name anyone who is arrested for a felony offense.
